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Glucose (sugar in the blood) is essential for the maintenance of life, as our body uses sugar to produce energy that is essential for the normal functioning of the various organs and tissues.
However, for our cells to be able to receive the glucose, which is found in the blood, they need the help of a hormone - INSULIN.
Insulin is a hormone that is expressed in pancreatic beta-cells.
This hormone has the main function:
Promote glucose uptake in certain cells of the body, promoting an increase in energy substrate in these cells
Its target organs
Liver
Adipose tissue
Skeletal and cardiac muscle - striated muscle
Regulates carbohydrate, lipid, and protein metabolism
It has an essentially anabolic role (synthesis of complex molecules from simpler ones)
Diabetes Mellitus is a metabolic disease characterized by a high concentration of glucose in the blood - HYPERGLYCEMIA.
Blood glucose concentration is also the way to diagnose this disease.
Types of Diabetes
Diabetes Mellitus is, as we have seen, characterized by hyperglycemia, and therefore this condition is common to all types of diabetes, which varies in the different types of diabetes mellitus are the pathogenic mechanisms, that is, the mechanisms that lead the individual to have hyperglycemia.
Type I Diabetes Mellitus - an autoimmune disease characterized by the destruction of pancreatic beta cells (insulin-producing cells) - the body completely stops producing insulin
Type II Diabetes Mellitus - caused by an inadequate secretory response of pancreatic beta cells (the body produces too little insulin)
Diabesity - Over the last few years, there has been an increase in the number of diabetic people due to obesity, thus giving rise to the term that intends to associate these two conditions (diabetes and obesity).
Symptoms
When hyperglycemia manifests itself, in other words, when high concentrations of glucose build up in the blood, cells run out of glucose, unable to produce energy.
Some of the symptoms of hyperglycemia are:
Urinate in large quantities and more often (polyuria)
Have constant and intense thirst (polydipsia)
Dry mouth sensation (xerostomia)
Constant hunger and difficulty to satiate
Tiredness
Itching in the body (especially at the level of organs genitals)
Blurred vision
Associated Diseases
In addition to these symptoms, chronic hyperglycemia and the metabolic dysregulation associated with it (the body does not produce insulin, or produces it in low amounts) cause damage to several organs and/or systems:
Kidneys (e.g., diabetic nephropathy)
Eyes (e.g., diabetic retinopathy, cataracts, glaucoma)
Nerves (e.g., diabetic neuropathy)
Blood vessels (e.g., Myocardial Infarction, Stroke - Stroke)
Diabetic individuals are even more susceptible to developing other types of infections, such as:
Tuberculosis
Pneumonia
Pyelonephritis
Prevention of Diabetes Complications
References
https://www.shreeyashhospital.org/latest-update/complications-of-dia/7 (20/08/2021)
King, A. J. F. (2012). The use of animal models in diabetes research. British Journal of Pharmacology, 166(3), 877–894. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1476-5381.2012.01911.x
Kumar, V., Abbas, A., & Aster, J. (2020). Robbins and Cotran Pathologic Basis of Disease (10th ed.). Elsevier Health Sciences.
Lotfy, M., Adeghate, J., Kalasz, H., Singh, J., & Adeghate, E. (2017). Chronic complications of diabetes mellitus: a mini review. Current Diabetes Reviews, 13(1), 3–10.
Wang, X. K., Sun, T., Li, Y. J., Wang, Y. H., Li, Y. J., Yang, L. Di, Feng, D., Zhao, M. G., & Wu, Y. M. (2017). A novel thiazolidinediones ATZD2 rescues memory deficits in a rat model of type 2 diabetes through antioxidant and antiinflammation. Oncotarget, 8(64), 107409–107422. https://doi.org/10.18632/oncotarget.22467
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